I have received a lot of questions about the contours shown on the Radio-Locator maps. For AM they are:
- Red – 3.0 mV/m – Generally the Sellable area of the station
- Purple – 0.5 mV/m – Rural protected service area, but nobody would buy ads.
- Blue – 0.1 mV/m – You might still get it on a car radio
For FM they are:
- Red – 60 db/uV or 1.0 mV/m – Protected service area for Class A and C stations
- Purple – 50 db/uv or 0.316 mV/m – A pretty weak Signal, nobody would buy ads.
- Blue – 40 db/uv…
The agency that regulates broadcasting in Mexico, CoFeTel has approved the use of HD Radio for both AM and FM stations withing 320 km of the US Border. The news reports did not mention whether night operation by AM stations was authorized.
Official statement (translated):
“Considering the extent of the development and implementation of the IBOC system in the United States of America, Mexico is required to take decisive action so that in the zone located within 320 kilometers of the northern border of Mexico can…
Crawford Broadcasting has started a forum to investigate means of combating the rash of copper thefts from ground systems. You can look for ideas and add your two cents at The Copper Capers forum. If you have a theft, please post the details here so that we can understand the risks.
The historic KFI tower fell in December 2004 when a private aircraft hit the tower. After three years of seeking approval to rebuild the 684 foot structure, the new tower construction was underway Tuesday, 19 March 2008 when the partially constructed tower collapsed. For a full story see Dino’s Website with pictures of the falling tower.
The FCC has issued guidance for AM stations with Pre Sun Rise Authorizations and Post Sun S et Authorizations for operation during the March extension of daylight savings time. The notice can be downloaded here
According to Radio Magazine, the ITU gave the green light for DRM digital broadcasting in the tropical bands. Although not strictly an AMBand issue, it is creeping close, since the tropical bands are just above the high end of the US AM band. You can read the full article here.
The National Radio Systems Committee has issued two revised AM standards and deleted the NRSC-3 receiver specifications standard as obsolete on September 26. The revised standards are NRSC-1-A and NRSC-2-A. NRSC-1-A specifies the preemphasis and deemphasis curves and bandwidth limitations for AM transmission, while NRSC-2-A sets the standards for RF emissions from AM stations. The NRSC intends to publish the revised standards as soon as a procedural review is completed, in about four weeks.
The NRSC also adopted a guideline for recommended bandwidth for AM transmission. NRSC-G100 provides…
Our southern neighbors have formally communicated that they want the FCC to reconsider its order authorizing AM IBOC operations at night. A recent Radio World Online article outlines the objections. Leonard Kahn’s TheWrathofKahn.org site has a copy of the letter which objects to FM IBOC authorizations as well.
This is one more bump in the road for digital Medium Wave Broadcasting, but I think that our neighbors south of the border are probably just reserving their places at the table. I have heard that at least one Mexican…
For those of us who have found the “Yellow Gold” in the ground at tower bases disappearing: Ron Nott of Nott LTD (the unipole folks) are experimenting with the use of #10 Copperweld for the radial wires of a ground system. They are checking out the potential pitfalls and benefits of installing a copper bonded steel wire instead of installing a wire which people want to steal!
I am looking forward to hearing of the eutectic (metal bonding) and corrosion resistance characteristics of this…
The FCC has issued RM-11384 to my petition to revise the Pre-SunRise and Post-SunSet Authorization rules for AM stations. The petition seeks relief for AM stations of all classes to operate with the maximum power that will not cause interference during the essential winter “drive time” hours.
The petition proposes that stations may maintain their present PSRA and PSSA operations, but if no interference is caused, to potentially operate with much higher power during the transition hours. Everyone knows that skywave signals don’t just suddenly reach out the great distances that they do in the middle of…
